Sentencing

Sentencing is when the judge decides what should happen when an accused is found guilty of breaking the law. This might include a community sentence or a custodial sentence.

The sentence should always be fair and proportionate and purposes of sentencing may include: “protection of the public, punishment, rehabilitation of offenders, giving the offender the opportunity to make amends, expressing disapproval of offending behaviour.” You can find more information about sentencing in the “Scottish Sentencing Council Annual Report 2018/19” and “Principles and Purposing of Sentencing: Sentencing Guideline 2018” here.

If an accused person is found guilty of a crime, they can seek permission from the court to appeal against: the conviction, the sentence or both. You can find out more about the appeals process here.

If a person loses an appeal and believes there has been a ‘miscarriage of justice’, they can apply for a reference from the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC). You can find out more about the SCCRC here.

In 2018, Community Justice Scotland supported research to be conducted by Prof. Cyrus Tata, Dr. Marguerite Schinkel, Dr. Beth Weaver and Prof. Fergus McNeill. This research aims to explore communication during sentencing and the subjective experiences of sentenced people. This research will follow 5 – 8 Summary Sheriff Court cases and will explore how sentences are communicated to, and how these are understood by, those being sentenced. Information will be obtained via court sentencing observations in addition to interviews with Sentenced People, Sheriffs and Defence Lawyers. This research will prepare the way for a larger 3 year longitudinal study. Initial research findings are expected in 2020 and will be published on the Community Justice Scotland website and included here when available.